Free EBooks and Texts - Judaism

Find here a vast collection on free online EBooks, Electronic and Digital texts (Etexts) in various categories for study and research.

About Judaism

Judaism is a monotheistic religion. Its tenets are based on Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible, which has been interpreted anda explained in other texts such as the Talmud. Judaism is centered around the covenantal relationship God established with the Children of Israel.

Judaism is not a homogenous religion, and embraces a number of streams and views. Today, Rabbinic Judaism is the most numerous stream, and holds that God revealed his laws and commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai in the form of both the Written and Oral Torah Historically, this assertion was challenged by various groups such as the Sadducees and Hellenistic Judaism during the Second Temple period; the Karaites and Sabbateans during the early and later medieval period; and among segments of the modern reform movements.

Liberal movements in modern times such as Humanistic Judaism may be nontheistic. Today, the largest Jewish religious movements are Orthodox Judaism (Haredi Judaism and Modern Orthodox Judaism), Conservative Judaism and Reform Judaism. A major source of difference between these groups is their approach to Jewish law. Orthodox Judaism maintains that the Torah and Jewish law are divine in origin, eternal and unalterable, and that they should be strictly followed. Conservative and Reform Judaism are more liberal, with Conservative Judaism generally promoting a more "traditional" interpretation of Judaism's requirements than Reform Judaism.

A typical Reform position is that Jewish law should be viewed as a set of general guidelines rather than as a set of restrictions and obligations whose observance is required of all Jews. Historically, special courts enforced Jewish law; today, these courts still exist but the practice of Judaism is mostly voluntary. Authority on theological and legal matters is not vested in any one person or organization, but in the sacred texts and rabbis and scholars who interpret them

Judaism claims a historical continuity spanning more than 3,000 years. Judaism has its roots as a structured religion in the Middle East during the Bronze Age. Of the major world religions, Judaism is considered one of the oldest monotheistic religions. The Hebrews / Israelites were already referred to as "Jews" in later books of the Tanakh such as the Book of Esther, with the term Jews replacing the title "Children of Israel". Judaism's texts, traditions and values strongly influenced later Abrahamic religions, including Christianity, Islam and the Baha'i Faith. Many aspects of Judaism have also directly or indirectly influenced secular Western ethics and civil law. (Source: Adpated from Wikipedia under the under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License )

Tanakh The Jewish sacred text is the Tanakh, whose name is an acronym of Torah, Nebi'im and Ketuvim (Law, Prophets and Writings). It consists of the same books as the Christian Old Testament, although in a slightly different order and with other minor differences.

Torah Although the word "Torah" is sometimes used to refer to the entire Tanakh or even the whole body of Jewish writings, it technically means the first five books of the Tanakh. These books are also known as the Five Books of Moses or the Pentateuch.

Talmud: The Oral Torah Another important Jewish text is the Talmud, a collection of rabbinical writings that interpret, explain and apply the Torah scriptures. The Talmud was written between the second and fifth century CE, but Orthodox Jews believe it was revealed to Moses along with the Torah and preseved orally until it was written down. The Talmud is thus known as the "Oral Torah," with the first five books of the Tanakh designated the "Written Torah."

Midrash A third group of Jewish literature is the Midrash, which is a large body of rabbinical material derived primary from sermons (the Hebrew word for "sermon" is d'rash). The primary collections of Midrash were compiled between the fourth and sixth centuries, but the midrashic form continues to the present day.

Responsa A further set of Jewish writings is the responsa, a vast collection (thousands of volumes) of answers to specific questions on Jewish law. If the Talmud is a law book, the responsa are case law.

Tanakh (Hebrew Bible). The Tanakh is the Hebrew Bible, the quintessential sacred text. The first five books of this comprise the Torah (or Pentateuch), the core sacred writings of the ancient Jews, traditionally written by Moses under divine inspiration. .

The Babylonian Talmud. Translated by M.L. Rodkinson [1918]. A massive ten volume abridgement of the Talmud, the Jewish compendium of law and tradition, the only extensive public domain translation. Presented for the first time anywhere on the Internet at sacred-texts.com. .

Eighteen Treatises from the Mishna. by D. A. Sola and M. J. Raphall [1843]. One of the first English translations of a substantial portion of the Mishna, the treasure-house of Jewish law and tradition. .

Sayings of the Jewish Fathers (Pirqe Aboth). tr. by Charles Taylor [1897]. A beautiful extract from the Talmud, which has been used as liturgy. Devoted to ethics with some mystical touches, the Pirqe Aboth is distinguished for its transparency and simplicity. This was one of the first English translations in modern times of any portion of the Talmud. .

Legends of the Jews. by Louis Ginzberg [1909].. A huge collection of traditional stories which have grown up around the Bible narrative. . . Kabbalah.

The Kabbalah Unveiled. S.L. MacGregor Mathers, Translator. [1912]. An extensive introduction to the Kabbalah. Includes translations of three texts from branch of the Kabbalah known as the Zohar: The Book of Concealed Mystery, The Greater Holy Assembly, and The Lesser Holy Assembly. .

Sepher Yezirah. translated by Isidor Kalisch [1877]. Includes English translation and pointed Hebrew for this key text of the Kabbalah. .

The Zohar: Bereshith to Lekh Lekha. by Nurho de Manhar (pseud.) [1900-14]. The Zohar is a Kabbalistic commentary on the Hebrew Bible. This is the only extensive English translation of a portion of the Zohar currently in the public domain. Covers Adam to Abraham. .

Jewish Mysticism. by J. Abelson [1913]. The Kabbalah in the context of the history of Jewish Mysticism. .

The Cabala. by Bernhard Pick [1913]. A short critical introduction to the Kabbalah. . Midrash.

Tales and Maxims from the Midrash. by Samuel Rapaport [1907]. A popular Midrash compilation. This is the (unattributed) source for the next two entries' Midrash extracts. This book has the references for each of the passages quoted lacking in the texts below, which makes it the best source if you wish to quote some of this material. .

The Standard Prayer Book by Simeon Singer [1915]. Complete English translation of a Jewish Prayer Book, or Siddur, including prayers, holidays, ceremonies, and important texts. . Other texts from late Antiquity and Middle Ages.

The Works of Flavius Josephus. by Josephus, tr. by William Whiston [1737]. Josephus was a Jewish historian, soldier and scholar who lived in the first century [37-100 C.E.]. His works are primary historical sources of information about the doomed Jewish revolt of 66-9 C.E. .

The Fountain of Life. by Solomon ibn Gabirol, tr. by Harry E. Wedeck [1962]. An extract from the Jewish writer Solomon ibn Gabirol's philosophical treatise on the First Cause, misattributed for centuries to an Islamic or Christian author named Avicebron. .

Disclaimer: Links to Third-Party web sites are provided for member convenience only. Hinduwebsite.com does not endorse nor support the content of third party links. Any website you visit by a link from this site is solely the responsibility of the vendor, merchant, or other party providing the site. Links that may be accessed via this site are for the convenience of browsers only. We are not responsible for the content, privacy or security of the third-party web sites. The content of, including materials and information contained on, any site to which you link from this site is solely the responsibility of the provider of that web site. Hinduwebsite.com is not responsible for any such third party content that may be accessed via this site, nor the organizations publishing those sites, and hereby disclaims any responsibility for such content. Any transactions that you enter into with a vendor, merchant or other party listed in this site or linked from this site are solely between you and that vendor, merchant or other party.

About: Hinduwebsite.com provides original and scholarly information about Hinduism and related religions, society and culture. We promote tolerance and the highest ideals reflected in these cultures. We have been serving the world community since 1999. More...